Silhouette in Detail | Part 1

Every tiny detail plays a critical role when it comes to manufacturing eyewear. Only when all the components are in perfect synchronisation is the eyewear fit for the eyes. But how does a piece of metal or synthetic material become an eyewear temple with a form and function that needs to live up to the highest expectations? We take a backstage look to see how a Silhouette is created.

0.6 millimetres – the smallest dimension of a hingeless titanium temple at its thinnest part – the spring zone, which ensures optimum hold and results in maximum wearing comfort. High-tech titanium and the exclusive synthetic SPX material produce ultra-thin, extremely supple temples that are renowned for being highly resistant and kind to the skin – without relying on any screws or hinges.

5,000 metres of high-tech titanium goes into Silhouette eyewear every year. A mountaineer would need to climb Mount Everest 55 times before he reached this distance. The titanium wire, which is purchased in huge coils from Silhouette’s preferred suppliers, is first cut into the required lengths. They are shaped into various calibres in high precision reducing machines before employees accurately measure them to within 1,000th of a millimetre. These will later become temples, bridges and tiny parts, for the screwless hinges, for example.

450 tonnes – the pressure exerted by the hydraulic press that stamps the short pieces of titanium wire into future temples or bridges. Finally, punching tools provide the temples and bridges with their exact form and the future design article begins to take on shape.